Product Launch Checklist: How to Build Hype & Generate Sales
Launching a new project or product is so exciting! You’ve worked hard on creating a new product line, podcast or membership and now it’s time to share it with the world! But whether your launch is successful or not depends on more than just the quality of your offer. In this blog, I’m sharing a product launch checklist that covers five marketing tips to help you have your best launch yet!
We’ll discuss the different launch phases, why you should set aside plenty of time for marketing, and how to build hype and anticipation by involving your audience early on.
I’ll share how to show up consistently throughout your launch, what to do if you’re not making any sales, as well as what to look out for in your post-launch debrief.
What is a launch calendar?
This is a content calendar that helps you effectively launch and sell what you’ve worked hard to create. Using this plan, you’ll prepare your emails, blogs, social media posts, videos and stories ahead of time so you can show up consistently and sell throughout your launch.
What do you need a launch calendar for?
Anytime you’re introducing something new into your business, you’ll need a launch calendar/plan. The size and scale of your launch can look different on every occasion but the overall flow remains the same. Whether you are launching:
- New offers: services, products, memberships.
- Freebies: challenges, podcasts, giveaways.
- Seasonal launches: courses, product lines, birthday promotions.
- Rebranding, brand refreshes and website upgrades.
Creating a launch calendar will help you to prepare ahead of time. This means you can avoid rushing your marketing or running out of steam, and maximise sales.
Product launch checklist: 5 tips for your best launch yet
Leave plenty of time for marketing
Does this sound familiar? When it comes to launching something new, you put ALL of your energy into creating your new offer but rush the marketing because you just want to get it out there!
Patience is not one of my virtues so I’m with you. However, you’ve worked really hard to create whatever you’re launching and you should make the most of the opportunity to share it with your audience.
Ideally, this looks like creating a fully fleshed out content plan for the entirety of your launch that covers pre, during and post. And as many of your marketing platforms as possible.*
*If you’re feeling overwhelmed by this, don’t worry. Keep reading to learn more about ways I can support you.
Go all out in the Pre-launch phase
Remember that time Beyonce surprised everyone by dropping an album without any warning?
We love that for her but we can’t get away with the same tactic. You don’t want to wait until your launch promo to tell your audience about your new offer.
The pre-launch phase is a crucial part of your marketing strategy. It’s the time to build hype and get your audience excited about what’s coming.
There are lots of ways you can do this. You can share teasers, name drops and inclusions to build anticipation. Or you can get them involved in small parts of decision making like choosing the name of products, colours or patterns. These small ‘yeses’ from your audience make them more likely to opt-in to whatever you are launching later on.
Show up consistently
If possible, you should aim to share something every day of your launch. I know that sounds like a LOT of content but it can be made simpler by repurposing and showing up on different platforms. Maybe that’s an email one day, Instagram post another and Instagram Stories in between.
Creating on the fly is tough, so that’s where your launch calendar comes in. With a plan in place, you’ll be well prepared and know exactly what you’re sharing, where and when.
But won’t my audience find it annoying?
Honestly, nobody is thinking about your business as much as you are. So while it might feel like you’re pumping out a lot of content, your audience won’t see everything you share. There’s so much being shared online, a few extra posts from you won’t be alarming to anyone I promise!
Keep going (even if you’re not making sales)
You’re a week into promoting your new offer, the excitement has worn off, and the fatigue of showing up every day is starting to feel draining.
If you haven’t got a solid plan in place, more often than not, you’ll end up cutting your promotion short.
I totally get it. It’s exhausting to keep pushing through but the kicker is, the end of your promo is often where the majority of sales happen!
There’s a lot of reasons for this. For one, people can be indecisive and may need multiple touch points to feel confident about opting in for your new offer. And we tend to put things off unless we feel urgency to take action NOW. If we can always opt-in later, then we will. There’s a reason sales and deadlines work!
All this to say, don’t cut your promotion short just because you aren’t making sales right away. Give people time and plenty of opportunities to opt-in.
Don’t forget the debrief!
Your launch is over, your sale is done, but before you kick up your feet and chill, it’s time to do a little debrief.
Make sure after every launch you assess your analytics, check your content performance, and reflect on what worked well and what didn’t.
The more information you can gather, the better prepared you’ll be for your next launch.
Want your most successful launch yet?
I have an exciting new service coming soon to help you successfully launch your latest offer!
HINT: I’ll be taking care of the promotion so you can focus on the creation of your next big thing.
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